The Journey For Remnant - a Rwby FanFic
by AnimeJauneBoy666
Summary: After the tragic and devastating events of the Fall of Beacon, we find our 4 main girls split apart and the remainder of Team JNPR heading off with Ruby to help combat the evil spreading out through Remnant. As the days pass, our heroes must all face demons within themselves that could determine the fate of their lives... And the lives of those around them...
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

The crisp night air bashed against the tents deep inside the forest, as the occupants lay there, in the cocoon of their dreams, in their attempt to briefly escape the horrible nightmare that is reality. However, one could not get out of reality as he lay there, completely still, waiting, hoping that all that is happening is all some sick dream… some farfetched nightmare. He lay… his eyes closed but mind not at peace.

Memories started to flash before his eyes. The screams of his love, the heart-broken kiss, the feeling of isolation as he was trapped in a metal box flying through the air, the helplessness as he waited for a sign that she was ok, anything…!

Jaune sat bolt upright, sweat pouring down his face as he tried to control his breathing. He looked to his left and saw the sleeping form of Lie Ren, his hair flowing down the makeshift sleeping bag. Jaune rose from his bed and slowly put his armour on, careful not to wake the sleeping ninja. He then stepped out into the cold, moonlit woodland and silently made his way to the river near to their encampment. As he lay on the dark sand staring at the calm water, his mind once again flashed back to the last night of the "Battle of Beacon".

* * *

He opened his eyes to him sprinting towards the CCT like a blur, faster than he'd ever gone, adrenaline pumping through his blood like a drug. His hands stung and seared as he hoisted himself up the elevator shaft using broken wires and jagged pieces of metal as hoists. He raised his sword and shield in a defensive position as he reached the top but was suddenly blinded by a silver light that engulfed the air. As the light faded he gazed at the mighty Grimm Dragon that seemed to be frozen in place as if suspended in time. His eyes travelled to the ground as he saw a bow lying on the ground but no sign of its owner. He then looked further on the floor… And then it hit him. The feeling of utter despair as he dropped to the ground, the crown that used to lay on top of a set of fiery red hair… and a bloody arrow that lay next to it. He gripped the crown against his chest as his face burned with tears, gushing like a wound. His fear grew as he saw his oldest friend lying on the floor, white and cold to the touch. Her silver eyes seemed to glow in the light. She had a pulse… He breathed a sigh of relief as he dialled a number and hoped that it still worked. A middle-aged female voice answered.

"Mr Arc…? What is it? Has anything happened?"

"I'm sorry Glynda but I don't have time to explain! Is Qrow with you?"

He heard a small muffled exchange and then the familiar voice of Ruby's uncle/drunkard.

"What is it?"

"Qrow, it's Ruby! I found her at the top of the CCT! She's unconscious! There was also this bright ligh…"

"I'm on my way! Do not leave her side!" Responded Qrow, with an urgency and seriousness that greatly departed from the drunken swagger that he's usually associated. Jaune slotted his scroll back on his belt as he wiped the tears from his face. As the time passed, his thoughts went from mourning to pure, unbridled hatred. He had never felt such rage towards the person who had done this. The person who had orchestrated this chaos, who had caused the injury of many of his friends, the death of Penny, the death of… her. His thought was briefly interrupted by the arrival of drunkle Qrow, who quickly pulled Ruby up into his arms as she twitched in pain.

"It's alright. I gotcha kiddo."

But as he and Qrow turned and left the CCT, his mind was set.

Whatever happened… he would avenge Pyrrha and his friends!

He would kill Cinder Fall.

* * *

Jaune's eyes fluttered open as rain started to fall, drenching him and seeping into his clothes. He sighed and rose from the ground, took out his sword and shield and wondered aimlessly into the forest, heading further from his friends and closer to the growls of the night.

* * *

 _ **Hey guys, thanks for reading! After doing this chapter, I realised that it is much, MUCH shorter than many other fanfic chapters. One reason I left it where it was was because it felt like a good stopping point. I will try to lengthen the chapters more if more chapters are wanted. If you liked the story and would wish for me to continue, or you have some constructive critisism (please no straight up hate for no reason), please tell me! Thanks!**_


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

The morning sun rose in the distance, bringing with it a weird feeling of hope that had been sorely lacking these past few weeks. As Team RNJR rose from their peaceful slumber, undisturbed by Grimm all night, which was very much a blessing, one member, as noted by Ren, was noticeably absent. The silent ninja pondered the knight's whereabouts as he prepared the fire and pan for breakfast.

However, this was no ordinary breakfast. This was one of the most important breakfasts Ren was ever going to cook. Why? Well… because Ren was going to make pancakes. Yes you heard right… Pancakes! Why was this so important? Well, as you know, Nora loooveees pancakes. She even gets withdrawals sometimes if she does not have pancakes every so often. After the fall of Beacon and the loss of their teammate, Pyrrha, Nora tried to remain light hearted and energetic as always. Once she found out that they had gathered enough ingredients to make the food, Nora was over-the-moon. Which is why Ren had to be careful. If the pancakes were not cooked properly or became inedible, Nora would either break down and cease to be the giddy person she usually is… or flip and try to attack anyone or anything in sight in a blind rage.

But there was another reason this needed to be perfect. Ren wanted to keep Nora happy. Not in fear of her, but because he cared for her more than he had ever cared about anyone in his life. Since their journey with Ruby had begun, Ren's one motivation to keep striving was Nora. The ninja had never before felt such of a powerful feeling towards anyone in his life but he knew what it was… Love. He was falling in love with his life-long friend, Nora.

The sun was fully risen by the time the smell of pancakes filled the air and made its way into Nora and Ruby's tent. Ren heard a loud crash, followed by sounds of cloth and a moan as Nora burst out of the tent and started to run laps around Ren and the fire, more hyper than ever before and that's saying something. Ren merely smirked at this act and continued to check on the pancakes, which he was stacking on 4 separate plates, one for each team member, being cautious to not allow Nora to snatch the treats before anyone could eat them. Once all the pancakes had been cooked, Ren, Nora and Ruby all sat down and enjoyed the tasty treat, happy to eat food other than pre-packed food that tasted of grime and whatever else they could scavenge.

Although, one thing was bothering all 3 of them. Where was Jaune?! Last they saw him, he was fast asleep (well… they thought he was anyway) in his bed in Ren's tent that they had "borrowed" from Ruby's dad. He had never been absent for so long before. He had sometimes been absent to deal with some wandering Grimm during hi nightshift, but never this amount of time. A single look was shared between all 3 of them and they silently agreed. Once the cutlery, extra food and tent were packed away, they drew their swords and went looking for their friend.

* * *

They managed to find a trail of footprints in the mud as rain start to pour down, soaking the ground and making it harder to find a trail. After a while, they came across an open plot of land where they saw a horrific sight. Countless Grimm, from Beowolves to Ursai, were scattered across the field, blood staining the ground, body parts strewn around! And in the centre was Jaune Arc, kneeling on the blood-soaked ground, drenched head-to-foot in crimson, head drooped down in the rain.

His team slowly made their way to him as the storm continued to fall. Ruby crept over to the heroic knight and slowly bent down beside him. She gently caressed his cheek and turned his head to face her. The first things she took in as he was turning was his body twitching and shaking and the obvious tears running down his face, separate from the rain. Once the two were face-to-face, she was terrified to see that he was in fact smiling and though his eyes were shadowed by his hair, she could clearly see the glowing red that had replaced the blue. Then… he started to laugh… and laugh… and laugh! His laughter became manic as the others watched on, terrified!

Jaune then rose, still laughing, and readied Crocea Mors. He then lunged at Ruby, attacking her with quick slashes to the chest. Though she blocked them, she had never seen Jaune be so quick and deadly before. He then lunged at Ren, swiping his sword at his friend, distracting him momentarily, giving him the chance to sweep his legs and kick, sending Ren into the air, and swing his shield, smacking Ren square in the face, breaking his nose and sending him flying across the field.

This was the moment that Ruby and Nora knew that Jaune was not himself and would not stop on his own. They needed to take him down without seriously injuring him. Ruby activated her semblance, flying in front of Ren, protecting him as Jaune continued to walk towards his friend. As Jaune swung down, Ruby parried and smacked him in the face with the handle of Crescent Rose. She then slammed the hilt into his legs sending him sprawling on the ground. Ruby pointed the tip on the blade at his neck and heaved a sigh of relief. They has won. Jaune looked at the blade, then to Ruby and spoke, simply saying "Do it…" with the same smile as before. This freaked out Ruby more than anything. She was inches away from killing her closest ally, the goofball of Beacon, the first friend she had ever had since arriving at the academy… and he was asking for it. She backed off, horrified. Just as Jaune was about to rise, Nora kicked him straight in the temple, knocking him out cold.

* * *

Jaune awoke, head aching, bound to a chair in a tent with his three teammates speaking quietly to each other outside. They noticed he had awoken and stepped inside.

"Umm guys, why am I bound to a chair…?" He grew more worried as he noticed the looks of fear and caution they had while looking at him.

"Jaune… W-what the last thing you remember?" Said the Red Reaper.

"Well, I got out of bed around two o'clock in the morning, got dressed and went outside to… walk!" He lied. Though he tried, Jaune was never good at lying, especially to his friends.

"Jaune please tell us!" Ruby pleaded, tears forming in her eyes. She hated seeing Jaune bound and not allowed to move. It hurt her that he just flat out lied to her after he attacked her, unknowingly, a few hours ago.

Jaune looked down in shame. He was a disappointment. He had just lied to his friend with only brief hesitation and she knew he had. "I-I… I went out to train. For a while now I've been going out at night to train and become stronger. Ive never been as good a fighter as any of you. So I decided to train to improve what… she taught me."

Everybody knew what he meant by her. They all lowered their heads as if giving a moment of silence to the fallen Spartan. Ren then broke the silence, asking "Do you remember anything else?"

Well, I came across a pack of Beowolves, got ready to fight and then I woke up here. Why…? And why am I bound? What happened?!"

Ren then proceeded to explain what happened, from leaving to the fight and then binding him. While this was happening, Ruby was deep in thought. Is it right to bind him when he clearly said that he must've blacked out? Was he still a threat? Why did it happened?

Finally, they decide to release Jaune but are on guard in case anything happens. Jaune sighs as he sits on the wet grass, staring into the sky as the stars come out. He sighed. "Why can't I fight? Why am I even here? I'm more of a hindrance than a help. I'm just dragging them down."

"You're improving immensely!" A voice called out.

"Yeah… But I will never be good enough…I wasn't good enough to save you."

* * *

 ** _Hey guys! Sorry for the cliffhanger but a good ending point is a good ending point! Thanks for reading and as always if you have any criticism or want me to continue, write a review! I'll try to get the next chapter up by Sunday or Monday!_ **


	3. Chapter 3

Rwby Fanfic - A Journey For Remnant

Chapter 3

As the day darkened to a close, the four huntsmen settled down for the night. As Ruby and Nora drifted softly to sleep, Ren sat outside of his and Jaune's tent, watching out for any Grimm but also to make sure Jaune does not try to leave. Inside the tent, Jaune lay awake, thinking about what could have happened to make him attack his friends like that.

 _Did I actually do that or was it someone else?_ He thought.

 _Yeah it wasn't you… It was actually the Easter bunny but your friends decided to frame you instead just for the LOLs!_ Spoke another part of his brain.

 _Well, if it was me… why? Why would I suddenly attack my friends?_

 _Maybe it's because you're fed up of being the loser. Maybe because you hate them for judging you and want revenge. Maybe… you want them dead._

 _No! That's not true!_

 _C'mon think! You are found surrounded by corpses, your eyes were red and you attacked your friends. You're embracing your dark side, Vomit Boy, and its making you stronger._

 _Don't call me that! Only Ruby calls me that!_

 _Oh Jauney, I'm you, whether you like it or not! Why don't you just except your dark side… It can help to save your friends… And avenge the ones you couldn't._

"Pyrrha…" Jaune whispered, his voice cracking as a tear rolled down his cheek.

He felt a soft, yet cold, hand caress his face and a soothing voice whisper close by, yet so far. "Jaune… It's ok. I'm here."

He lifted his eyes to gaze upon the redheaded translucent figure smiling at him. His eyes filled with tears again.

"Pyrrha, I'm sorry. I couldn't save you, I wasn't good enough."

"And that is why you need to train. To make sure this never happens again. But you know what you have to do."

"But I can't just abandon them. They're my friends…!"

"… and they are holding you back from unlocking your full potential. If you want to be a hero and save them from harm you have to do this."

Jaune lowered his head. He knew Pyrrha was right. He had to leave. Now.

He silently packed up his things and crept to the tent entrance. There he saw Ren, sat on the ground, only half awake. Jaune carefully opened the tent and then, in an instant, wrapped his arm around Ren's neck, pulling upwards and choking him. He quickly held a hand over his mouth to stop him calling for help. He closed his eyes as he felt the groans and struggles of his friend, until… he went limp. Jaune lay Ren's body on the ground and check his heart. A pulse. Only unconscious. He dragged his body into the tent and, as silently as he could, fled into the dark of the wood.

As Jaune made his way through the dense forest, he came across a lone boulder planted into the earth. Being exhausted from walking and not having slept for a few days, he decided to rest. Before he slept though, he needed to meditate in order to clear his mind and help recover aura that had been lost fighting Grimm.

He climbed atop the rock and sat, cross-legged with his arms on his legs, and started to calm. He sat there, in complete silent, as the cold night air sent shivers up his legs. Slowly, first without him realising it, he started to glow. A pure white. The longer he sat there, the brighter it was becoming, until he became an essence of pure light. Jaune's eyes shot open but were immediately closed by the dazzling light, but it was too bright and was easily passing through his eyelids. The light was so bright, in fact, that countless Grimm were being drawn to it. Then came the pain. Endless, endless pain. All of his body seemed to burn at once. He felt like he was being burned alive, pain. Then it became too much and his mind faded away.

Jaune's eyes opened to the sight of no less than few hundred Grimm, all surrounding him and staring menacingly at him. He went to grab his sword but Pyrrha's voice suddenly rung in his head.

 _You don't need that anymore._

 _But I need a weapon to defend myself, I can't just…_

… _Trust me!_

Jaune sighed and let go of Crocea Mors's handle.

 _Now I want you to concentrate. Focus and look at your hand. Imagine wielding a sword. Feel the firm handle grip your hand. Feel the weight of it burden your arm. Focus._

Jaune focused and focused. His eyes widen as his arm began to glow and in his hand began to form a handle of pure white. It expanded farther than the length of his normal sword bordering on greatsword but feeling as light as a feather. But what surprised him the most was that it appeared to be in cased in flames. White flames surrounded the blade but he felt no heat, no pain. He stood shocked but quickly put his new ability to the test. He looked over to his free hand and mustered his energy. Soon, he held a shield too, similar to his own but larger and, again, surrounded by fire. He felt power surge through his body as he jumped down from the boulder. He saw several Beowolves howl and charge towards him as he slowed his breathing and held back his reckless desire to charge at them at once. He felt his heartbeat slow to a crawl. He waited… and waited…

The first Beowolf leapt forwards at the knight, baring it sharp and jagged teeth. When the Beowolf was mere inches away, Jaune bounced back on the rock and triple flipped over the Grimm, at speeds faster than any normal human. He slashed at the next incoming Beowolf and the sword cut cleanly through as if he were cutting through paper. He then jumped up and kicked the remains of the Grimm into an Ursa Major that was charging at him. He continued swing and slashing, watching as enemy after enemy fell, their bodies slowly dissolving leaving stains of blood on the grass. Then night grew darker, his only source of light being his pure white Aura. The Grimm were now gathering around him in packs, so dense that it was impossible to count the numbers. He threw his sword at a few oncoming Grimm, impaling at least five of them and sending them flying backwards into a tree, where they were trapped by the sword to slowly die. Now Jaune was left with just a shield to defend himself from a wave of Grimm till he regained enough Aura to create another sword. As a massive Ursa Major ran full pelt towards him, he got into a defensive position and held. As the Ursa was close enough, he swung his shield at it, hoping to knock it off balance. Instead, it roared in pain as it fell backwards, as Jaune saw that his Aura shield had burned its face. Jaune stumbled and fell into a kneeling positon. He was exhausted and his Aura was low. He knew he couldn't win. He waited to die…

 _Don't give up now, Vomit-boy. You can do this. You need to do this… If you give up now, who will save them?!_ Spoke the same voice in his head.

 _I can't win. There are too many._ He answered.

 _There is one way to win. Let me take control for a bit. Let your dark side out!_

 _What?! So you can try to kill my friends again?! No!_

 _I promise I will not hurt them. I will give up control as soon as the work is done. C'mon, do you think Pyrrha would want you to give up so easily?!_

The voice inside him, or himself, technically, was right. He can't give up and let my friends pay for it.

 _Fine then. Yes…_

 _Excellent!_

Jaune suddenly felt a surge of energy as he saw his Aura turn from white to complete black. He felt himself rise from the ground as his vision became blurred and he was once again sucked into the darkness…


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Hey guys, long time, no chapter. First, I would like to apologise for this long overdue chapter. My main problem was college. I had a huge performance on the horizon and I needed to focus all of my effort into it. After that had finished, I needed to finish my assignment on the performance so it was a hectic time and I couldn't dedicate any full time to writing this properly. I will try to get at least 2 more chapters this holiday and we'll see what happens from there.

Second thing, if you guys would like to be up-to-date on my progess of writing these or if you want to just talk about Rwby stuff, check out my Twitter - Phil Wilson ( PhilWilson321). You can also add me on the Rwby Amino app, great app for Rwby fans if you haven't got it, my username is AnimeJauneBoy666.

Anyway, I'm rambling. ONTO THE ADVENTURE!

* * *

As the morning sun rose over the hills, so did a certain silent ninja, rubbing his neck and coughing violently as he tried to sit up. However a gentle but firm hand pushed him back on the ground and stroked his cheek.

"It's ok. Just rest. I've got you." Said the ever-recognisable voice of Nora, speaking in a slow, calm and soothing tone quite apart from her normally energetic and fast paced speech.

"Guys!" Ren knew the voice as belonging to Ruby "He took all of his stuff. I don't think he's coming back."

Oh no… As soon as she said it, Ren knew who she was talking about. He was supposed to be taking guard outside last night to make sure Jaune didn't escape.

He failed.

…

For a while, the team sat in an uncomfortably tense silence. After a good half an hour, Nora spoke up, "So… do we try to follow him?"

The look on all of their faces showed that they had no idea what the answer was. Do they to pursue him when he clearly wants to be alone? Will he attack again? Maybe next time they won't be so lucky…

So by that argument, the answer was clear. But it wasn't that simple. How could they abandon a dear and beloved friend? A friend, mind you, that had to deal with a much greater loss than them. The loss of not just a friend but a lover too.

Ren thought back to the night before Pyrrha's fateful fight with Penny.

 _Jaune had finally confessed to Ren and Nora and revealed his true feelings for the redhead warrior. While Nora ran around the room, chanting "ARKOS! ARKOS! ARKOS!" at the top of her lungs, Ren further questioned the knight, asking him when he was to confess to Pyrrha. "Well I was thinking… maybe after the end of the tournament. Once all of this dies down a bit. The tournament seems to be affecting her and I don't want to put more pressure on her. I don't know, if the opportunity presents itself, then maybe then…"_

 _Then, the next day, after wandering around the fairgrounds, the opportunity did, indeed, present itself. But it did not go as planned. And Jaune started to blame himself. He thought that, maybe, he had said something, he wouldn't have lost more of her. It crushed him, to think that he might have caused this… That he might've hurt her. Then came the fight. Then the battle of Beacon._

 _The next thing he remembered was seeing the knight walking towards the group of us huddled, waiting for our friends before we left. As Weiss and Blake carefully helped get Ruby and Yang to a medical ship, Nora and I stood up and walked to Jaune. The look on his tear stained face said it all. He swayed to look at us and, as if reading our minds, slowly lowered his head in shame. Nora's trembling hands covered her mouth as she silently wept. I pulled Nora into a strong but comforting hug as she cried into my shoulder. As we walked to the last remaining airship, the medical that Team RWBY was on, I could have sworn I saw a glint of crimson flash in his eyes._

Ren reopened his eyes to see Ruby pacing back and forth and Nora, just, sitting there.

"We need to go after him. He's our friend and he's in danger. Whatever's happened to him might lead to much more than a few Grimm being killed." They all nodded in agreement.

"But where do we start?" Piped up Ruby.

"Well, I checked and he didn't have much food on him when he left and he is the only one of us who knows the map nearly off-by-heart." Ren said, pulling out the map from his back pocket. "The closest village from here is Shion but knowing Jaune, that would be too obvious. That's too direct a path… Ah ha! Higanbana! It's quite large and fortified and it has a popular inn, so it would be easier to hide and not be noticed."

Ruby looked at Ren, puzzled. "I didn't know Jaune could think that expertly and secretly."

"Well, he is the strategist of the group, after all."

"Well, if we're gonna go after him," Nora replied, stepping forward, "we better start moving now. By the sounds of it, the Grimm will be on us any minute now."

Nora was right. The faint echoes of howls and growls vibrated through the forest behind them. They quickly gathered their stuff into their backpacks and, after putting out the small fire they had made to keep warm, they followed Ren and the map out into the wilderness.

* * *

Jaune's eyes flicked open as he rose from the grass, covered in sweat and a liquid that he realised to be blood. In fact, the entire area around him was stained, and something inside him spoke.

" _Ahhh, look at my marvellous work, Jauney, so beautiful…"_ Said the voice gleefully, cackling softly to itself. Jaune ignored the voice and propped himself up with his aura sword, faintly glowing in the late-winter sun. As he slowly walked into the woods, he started to look for any signs of a village or road, hoping to make it to Higanbana before sunset. The popular village could help him blend in and could maybe give him any hint to Cinder's location. After an hour or so, he came across the place he'd been waiting for. Higanbana. The voice in his head, though, became bored with Jaune constantly ignoring him and so tried to entertain himself by singing joyfully.

 _There once was a tale of a sad young man, and Jauney was his name-o._

 _He was a gentleman and a knight, and a redhead was his dame-o._

 _He snuck into school and when Beacon did fall, he couldn't stop an arrow._

 _His lover did fall and her crown hit the floor, he cried and shouted "NOOOOOOOOOOOO!"_

 _HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!_

"GET OUT OF MY HEAD!" He bellowed. The entire pub/inn fell silent. Jaune had been too distracted by the voices words to remember him entering the inn and taking a seat in the corner. After many confused and angry stares and a few under-the-breath insults, the people in the inn finally settled back down.

As Jaune tries to calm himself and stop from punching a wall, a waitress comes over to his table. Jaune looks up at her and half-smiles. She had long black hair that curved down to her shoulders and on. Her skin had a light-ish pink tint to it and she had dark brown eyes that seemed to sparkle in the light.

"Anything you want to order?" She asked.

"Just a San Miguel. Thanks." (For those readers too young to know, a San Miguel is a brand of beer)

"Got ID?" Jaune passed her his Huntsman-In-Training Licence.

"Beacon huh? So you were there when it fell?"

"Yeah…" Jaune replied, recollection in his eyes.

"Im sorry."

"For what?"

"I've seen that face before. Loss. So, a friend?"

"Something like that…"

The waitress could tell from the look he gave her what he meant.

"Gimme a sec…" And with that, she walked to the back of the bar and started to pour two drinks.

" _Damn she's hot, right Jauney?"_ Jaune ignored that comment and looked over at the bar. He saw her bend over to refill the containers and he got a good look at her from behind.

" _Damn Jaune, I see you looking. Go on and get some of that."_ Jaune turned slightly red at that.

"I wasn't looking!" He whispered to the voice.

" _Jaune, you aren't a good liar as it is. And remember, I AM you. Just grow some balls and flirt!"_

Jaune disregarded his comment and watched as the waitress grabbed the two now full drinks, passed one to Jaune and sat opposite him.

"You look like you need some company." She said, smiling.

Jaune leaned in, sipped his beer and smiled. "Thanks."

* * *

As the 3 members of RNJR entered the lively village of Higanbana, they started to wander towards the centre and the famous inn. They passed a group of people deep in conversation. The largest of the four spoke first.

"Fucking psycho. I wanted nothing more than to smack him in the face."

"So what happened?" Said the woman next to him.

"This random blond in armour plating walked into the inn and started shouting his head off. The dude looked fucking crazy, shouting to 'voices' in his head. Another one to chuck in an asylum."

"The dude might have been through some stuff. He looked like a huntsmen, with the sword and shield." Said another lad in the group.

"I don't think so. He looked too young. About 17 or 18 years old."

Ruby, Ren and Nora all exchanged looks, confirming their thoughts. They picked up the pace, sprinting to the inn. They ran into the bar area, empty apart one waitress behind the bar, cleaning glasses. She barely had time to look up before Ren was at the bar, questioning her.

"Hey, so have you seen a tall blond dude, about 6 foot, with knightly armour and a sword and shield."

"…" The waitress seemed transfixed on Ren, much to the anger of Nora. Before she could do anything though, the waitress snapped out of her trance.

"Oh. He's in one of the top most floor rooms. I'll show you."

"So why do you guys want to find him?" She said as they ran up the stairs.

"I'm sorry but we don't have time to explain. We just need to get to him." Piped up Ruby.

They arrived at the room. Blocked. However Nora stepped in. Removing her weapon from her back, she used the hammer mode and smashed the door clean off its hinges.

Gone. The bed was cleanly folded, apart from the rubble from the door. The window was open, leading to a straight 4-floor drop.

Ren's hands clenched into fists as Ruby and Nora turned to the waitress.

"So, did he talk to you at all? Any hints about where he was going? Anything?"

"Well… I think he did. We started to chat for a while, I can't remember right now."

"So… Can you fight?" Ren called out.

"Well, a bit. I have my weapon and kit in the back. Why?"

"What's your name?"

"It's ummm…" The waitress was slipping on her words. "It's Sable. Jones. But most people call me Stardust."

"Well Stardust, you gonna have to come with us. Get your stuff."


End file.
